Fresh Food made Fabulous

Tahini, the smell of the Middle East

Today let’s go to the Middle East. What do you think about falafel, roasted cauliflower and roasted eggplant, a yoghurt sauce and a tahini sauce?

For the falafel I start the day before. 350 grams of dried chickpeas from the Crete Senese will be too much for 2, but a falafel the following day, for lunch, is always great. Put the chickpeas in a large pan of water for 1 night. Drain, rinse and dry the chickpeas. Put them in the kitchen robot and mix. Add 1 onion, 2 chopped garlic cloves, a handful of fresh parsley and some fresh coriander. Mix again. Add some salt, 1 table spoon of grinded cumin, 1 table spoon of lemon juice, zeste of 1 lemon. Mix again, taste and add pepper and salt.

Halve 1 eggplant. Make some incisions in the meat of the eggplant. Put the two halves also on baking paper.

Blanch the cauliflower for approx 10 mins.

Mix 3 table spoons of tahini paste with the juice of 1 lemon, a drizzle of olive oil and some water until you obtain a perfect smooth sauce. Add 1 table spoon of za’atar, 1 teaspoon of turmeric, pepper and salt. Brush some sauce on the eggplant and on the cauliflower.

Heat the oven at 180°. Start baking the eggplant first. After 30 mins, add the falafel and the cauliflower (also on baking paper).

Serve everything with the leftover of the tahini sauce, a low fat Greek yoghurt mixed with pepper,salt and fresh parsley or coriander. Sadly enough the Middle East is not in peace, but we appreciate their lovely food culture.